Public Protector dedicates latest international award to her team,

South African colleagues, whistleblowers, people and

government
Friday, 17 October 2014
Public Protector Adv. Thuli Madonsela on Friday welcomed with a deep sense of humility her selection as the
winner of Transparency International's Integrity Award for 2014.

Transparency International is a global movement, formed in 1993, with a mission to stop corruption and
promote transparency, accountability and integrity at all levels and across all sectors of society.

Its Integrity Awards were created in 2000 to recognise the courage and determination of the many
individuals and organisations fighting corruption around the world.

Public Protector Madonsela, who will be presented with the award at a ceremony in Berlin, Germany on
Friday evening, said: "I accept the accolade with deep humility on behalf the Public Protector Team, fellow
integrity institutions in South Africa, whistleblowers and the resilient people of South Africa, particularly the
complainants, for their resolute stance and efforts against corruption and related maladies."

She also said she was convinced the award also recognizes the efforts of the government of South Africa in
creating and respecting a formidable legal and institutional framework for preventing and combatting
corruption and malfeasance.

Public Protector Madonsela further said the honour represented recognition of South Africa as a great
country that has committed itself to achieving social justice for all through ensuring that the potential of all
its people is freed and that their quality of life is improved.

She said there was recognition that to achieve social justice, the state must regulate fairly and justly, and
where appropriate, provide basic services to the people, and that corruption is a virus that undermines all
such efforts.

The accolade was further an assurance that democratic South Africa, as she turned 20, was a country still
on track in terms of claiming its place as a global citizen committed to good governance and reeding itself of
corruption and other maladies that undermine good governance, constitutional democracy and the rule of
law, Public Protector Madonsela added.

She said the country has the necessary laws, institutions and will among its people and leaders to pursue
good governance while shunning corruption, which, she reiterated, was a societal and global problem, rather
than a government issue and that everyone needed to play their part in fighting it.

"It is an honour and privilege to be recognized as part of a nation that is committed to doing the right thing
for all its people," Public Protector Madonsela said. "Nobody said it would be easy; our global icon, former
President Nelson Mandela, warned that despite our benevolence, mistakes may be made, hence the
importance of the legal and institutional framework that limits excesses in the exercise of public power and
the vigilance of civil society organizations like Corruption Watch and the media in ensuring public
accountability."

She thanked institutions such as Transparency International for taking an interest in domestic and global
governance, saying that this recognizes that "as long as there is injustice somewhere, sustainable peace
cannot be enjoyed anywhere."

According to Transparency International, about 127 nominations for this years award were submitted by the
public and some of the body's 100 chapters around the world. The jury for the awards is a committee of 11
individuals from across the world, who have been active in the anti-corruption movement for many years.